Never Let Go
by ZB-DannyGirl
Summary: DannyxCherish - Danny is invited to stay the weekend with Cherish and her partner Nicole because Mr. Goldo's on a business trip and of course he'd take the chance to see his girlfriend. Post Faudo arch - lets all pretend these two made past that point just for the sake of plot. Lots of fluff! Tell me if you approve of this seemingly crack pairing
1. Chapter 1

**The image I used belongs/belonged to Thriscara. Although she may have disappeared off the face of the internet, she told me I could use it whenever I wanted and I'm glad I can still share it with some of you guys. **

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"Now remember to behave yourself Danny Boy." Mr. Goldo lectured.

"Will you just shut up! You make it sound like you're sending me off to summer camp!" Danny yelled in irritation.A small smirk formed on his partner's face as the teenager turned away in embarrassment.

Mr. Goldo actually had another important assignment for his work and no security was needed this time around. Really the older man wouldn't have minded taking Danny along as usual, but he schemed something better.

It had been a few weeks since Danny and Cherish had started talking. The battle with Faudo had ended a little while back and the two mamodo had really hit it off since then; that was obvious to Mr. Goldo. He saw the way Danny looked at her and he decided he do his son a favor and set them up, at least for the weekend. So instead of taking the teen with him like he normally would, he stated that there was no need for the boy's presence and that he should get out of his hair for now and go stay with someone else… Cherish and Nicole.

"It will just be for the weekend, I'll be back before you know it." Mr. Goldo went on.

"Pfft. That's what I'm afraid of." Danny groaned.

A small chuckle came from his human partner and then he waved goodbye and boarded the airplane. Danny merely scoffed and went back to the car he was borrowing for the weekend. After dropping Mr. Goldo off, he drove himself over to Cherish's place. Somehow he felt a bit unsettled, like he had been made fun of somehow, but at that moment he really was looking forward to seeing his girlfriend. At last the two of them would finally get to spend some quality time together, no obligations or obnoxious old men in the way; just them enjoying each other's company.

It took quite some time, but now Danny was only 5 minutes away from his destination. He felt himself getting kind of nervous, afraid that maybe this weekend would turn out to be awkward because he would be staying the night at Nicole's place. Swallowing the lump in his throat at the thought, Danny decided that he couldn't dwell on things like that. Everything would be fine… better then fine.

When the house came into sight, he parked and grabbed his bag, approaching the door cautiously, trying to think of the best thing to say. However, his thought process was interrupted before he could even knock on the door.

"Danny!" Cherish greeted from the doorway she had just opened, and hugged him immediately. A subtle blush crept upon his cheeks as he dropped his bag and wrapped his arms around her affectionately.

"Hey Cherish. Thanks for letting me stay the weekend." He laughed, breaking their embrace.

"Hmm, how many times do I have to tell you that it's no big deal?" She snickered, nudging him playfully. "Now here, I'll help you with that."

"No way, I got it." He insisted, picking his bag up and dashing inside before she could attempt to assist him.

"So stubborn…" Cherish sighed, shaking her head, but followed him in.

Setting it down, he greeted his host saying, "Hey there Nicole, how are you?"

Nicole smiled at her new guest and replied, "Danny it's good to see you again. I'm fine. So good of you to spend these next few days with us."

"Heh. No thank you for the invite." He responded but then sniffed the air, smelling something delicious. "Uh, what's that smell? It's amazing!"

Coming up behind him, Cherish added, "Oh that's dinner. I made it myself…"

"At least 10 portions I might add. Cherish knows you like to eat." Nicole grinned; seeing Danny's awestruck face.

He felt a little bit of drool forming inside his mouth so he quickly swallowed it and smiled realizing he was in for quite a treat; seeing as everything smelled perfect. "Can't wait! When's it ready?"

"Right about now. Perfect timing." Nicole replied, pulling out the giant fish from the oven while Cherish took care of all the side dishes. Danny tried to help, asking where the plates and silverware were so he could at least set the table but Cherish scolded him saying that he was the guest and he had better just sit quietly at the table and wait. Sulking, he complied and took a seat while watching the two girls prepare everything.

As expected, everything was delicious. Danny was quick to complement Cherish on her masterful cooking skills and he dug in without hesitation, enjoying every bite. His girlfriend smiled sweetly, happy he liked what she had prepared especially for him and she too and her partner started eating.

After dinner Nicole claimed she had work to do in her room and the couple was left alone. "You mind helping me with the dishes?" Cherish asked and Danny quickly responded, "Oh yeah of course," gathering up the plates on the table while Cherish turned on the water to fill up the sink.

The two of them were mostly quiet as Cherish washed the dirty dishes and Danny dried them off then clumsily searched for their place in the cabinets until Cherish had to tell him where they belonged.

"So uh… It's still pretty early, what do you want to do?" Danny asked sheepishly, unsure of their next move.

"We have some games if you'd like to play." Cherish responded pointing to the closet with all Nicole's old board games in them. Truthfully she wasn't sure of that was a dumb suggestion, but it was worth a shot. Maybe it would be fun?

"Yeah that sounds good." He agreed, looking over all the human games. They took turns picking out a few though they didn't know any, and pulled them out on floor where they sat on the carpet.

At first they attempted Monopoly, but soon enough it became way too confusing and the two mamodo gave up at trying to sort out human finances. Their next choice was Uno, and after reading the instructions it seemed simple enough. Taking turns laying the color of the card or the number of the one last played, it came down to Cherish only having one card left. She played a yellow 5 and grinned at Danny, sure if he didn't have some sort of drawing card to use against her he would lose; after all he four cards left while she only had 1… and it just so happened to be a wild card so no matter what he played it was over.

He took a moment to look over her playing choice and he smirked glancing down at his cards just slightly. "I was just waiting for you to play that."

Cherish's eyes widened as Danny played a yellow skip card and then 3 other skip cards of varied colors… and the last one was a green 10, the color of the last skip he had played.

"How did you get so many stupid skips? And why save them all for last?" Cherish growled, irritated that he had used such a cheap trick.

"Strategy." He replied smugly, holding his arms in the air while yelling, "I guess that's zero!"

She gave him an annoyed playful shove, after which he dramatically fell over and laughed, "Ow Cherish, how mean!"

"Oh shut it!" She giggled back, picking up the next game that was called Sorry.

"'Sorry'… that's its name." Danny observed, "Sounds pretty accurate for how you're gonna feel once we start playing."

Cherish raised her eyebrows and countered, "You think so? We'll see who's laughing after this. Winner takes all!"

"You're on." He agreed; a challenging smile plastered on his face.

The two mamodo read the rules and started playing, Cherish had the red pieces and Danny took the blue. The goal was to get all four of your pieces into the home zone where they were safe, and to get out of starting position you had to draw a 1 or a 2.

"Oh look, a one." Cherish said in a bored tone, and pulled her first piece out. Danny picked up his own card which read 5… not one that could get you out of the starting position. A few turns later, the red pieces kept moving forward with each new turn, while the blue ones didn't move an inch. Danny was starting to get irritated every time Cherish drew a 1 or 2 and he couldn't even draw anything to get him out.

It took a while but eventually he did, and the game really began. Unfortunatly Cherish already had 1 piece in the home space and the other in the safe zone so he was really far behind.

"Oh look a 2! Guess I'm out." He proclaimed, ready to get in the game.

"Oops I drew a Sorry card." Cherish snickered, showing Danny that with it she could take one of her pieces from start to take the place of his own piece.

With the flick of her wrist she knocked his blue piece out with a red one and grinned in smug satisfaction. "OH COME ON." He whined loudly, back to where he started in the first place.

Cherish of course won that round which resulted in a variety of grumbling from Danny. "You had to have cheated somehow…" He murmured.

"You're the one who shuffled the cards!" She pointed out, poking Danny on the forehead.

"It's just a game of luck… No skills required, that doesn't count!"

"Winner take all remember? I think those were the exact words you agreed to?"

Squinting at her, Danny put the game away as Cherish giggled at his childish anger when he lost. Of course he wasn't legitimately upset, just a sore loser.

Coming up behind him, she wrapped her arms around one of his and pressed her cheek against his shoulder saying, "Do you want to watch a movie now? Nicole has some pretty good ones."

Danny blushed at the sudden affection and replied quickly, "Sure, why not?"

"I'll go get one then." She confirmed and went over to the DVD's.

The mamodo boy scowled to himself, angry that he was so easily embarrassed. They were dating and he should be able to muster at least somewhat of a cool response to their loving contact. Sometimes though it was easy for him to remember how seemingly perfect Cherish was… beautiful, strong, sweet… and he couldn't help but get a bit flustered when she showed him affection. He knew he was fortunate, but he decided that he would make the best of this time they had and only show resolve.

"How about this one?" She asked, holding up one of her favorites. Danny had no complaints with it of course, not knowing what it was. The two of them sat down together on the sofa, a blanket covering them. Cherish was curled up leaning into Danny while he wrapped his arm around her with his own head laid softly on hers.

He loved moments like this, just sitting quietly with her. When she was this close it was easy to smell her… something like flowers in the morning covered in dew and crisp air. There was also a hint of sunshine in her scent… Like warmth and light combined.

Cherish also enjoyed just being near Danny. He had the habit of putting his arm around her… and emanated the essence of protection. It wasn't his outer strength that made her feel a sense of security, but his very being seemed full to the brim of it, and every time she saw it, it was for her. Somehow he had a way to make her at ease.

Sometimes bad memories came up… the teenage girl recalled the worst feeling of pain and fear she had ever endured. It had the power to crush her confidence and mood, and although she knew she had support from Ted and the other children, when Danny was with her all the troubles just melted away as if she wouldn't even have to fight it at all… he would in her stead.

She had often tried to name his scent as well, but never could quite find the accurate description she wanted. Taking in a long breath through her nose she thought about it again… It was sort of like some kind of wood, with an earthy summer forest sort of scent, almost unnoticeable because it blended so well. It always had a way of relaxing her with its subtitle presence. Truly it caused her headaches to try to figure it out, but it was calming and she liked being this close so she could just enjoy it.

After a few minutes Cherish heard Danny's breathing get louder, and she looked up to see his eyes closed and his mouth parted just slightly, obviously asleep. She smiled and stifled a giggle watching him doze off. "Maybe next time I'll pick out an action movie instead…" She thought, amused.

Cherish assumed Danny usually went to bed early even though it had just gotten dark outside a bit ago. Deciding that one of her favorite movies wouldn't be spoiled, she wrapped her arms around her boyfriend and snuggled into his chest, staring at the T.V. screen until the film ended.

After it was over she carefully set Danny's head on a pillow at the edge of the sofa and placed his feet up like she would often do when the children she took care of in the mamodo world slept in odd positions. Kneeling down after covering him with a blanket Cherish whispered goodnight and kissed him gently on the forehead before going off to sleep herself.

She got into bed after brushing her teeth and hair, taking off her hat and putting on her pajamas. Cherish really was glad Danny was here… She hoped to have just as much fun tomorrow as today had been and she slept soundly dreaming happy thoughts.

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**Yay chapter one. Brace yourself for more fluff when the next one arrives :3 **


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Danny woke up groggily, stretching wearily and glancing around at this new environment he'd almost forgotten he'd fallen asleep in. "Oh yeah, Cherish!" He thought alarmed; the last thing he recalled was watching a movie with her.

Noticing this was the same couch they were on, he shook his head, sighing at his lack of control… he had wanted to stay awake and spend every second with her.

That's when Danny got an idea.

Getting up, he snuck over to Cherish's room, peeking in at her sleeping figure. Sitting at her bed side he lightly brushed some of her wavy hair out of the way and admired her serene expression. That was when Cherish barely opened her eyes and rubbed them sleepily. "Danny?" She sighed, recognizing the presence next to her.

"Good Morning Sleepyhead," He laughed.

"If anyone's the Sleepyhead it's you…" She moaned, not sure if she wanted to get up yet or not.

"Yeah maybe… but it's morning, c'mon!" He urged, poking her.

The mamodo girl simply shook her head, hiding beneath her hair. Danny made a face then smirked, scheming up an ingenious plan.

Cherish was alarmed when her blankets were suddenly gone. "Wha..?!" She started but was swept up into his arms bridal style. "Danny just what do you think you're doing?!" She questioned loudly, blushing at this sudden action.

She squealed a little when her boyfriend spun her around with ease laughing as he did so. "Cut it out!" She lectured, hanging on for dear life. Danny finally complied and set her on her feet, still holding her close because of her dizziness.

"Remind me to never let you be my wakeup call…" She joked playfully, holding his hands and started swaying like they were dancing. "Glad you liked it." He stated smugly, swaying with her.

"Hey you two, how can I sleep with this screaming? What sort of things have you been up to this morning…" Nicole teased from the doorway. Both of the teenagers faces turned red and they let go of each other in embarrassment.

"Let's get breakfast…" Cherish finally said, heading to the kitchen.

"Yeah…" Danny replied weakly, following behind.

During the meal they discussed the daily plans. They had a lazy morning, just hanging out and talking to each other about everything considering they never really had time to just casually speak. The couple was parted most of the time, and had a lot to share about their lives when they were separated. At about 3 they all agreed on their next destination.

"The beach? That sounds great!" Danny said energetically.

"Yeah Nicole suggested it. You brought a swimsuit right?" His girlfriend asked.

"Uh…yes I got one." He answered awkwardly.

"Well let's not waste time here," Nicole pitched in.

The three packed up the necessary supplies before rushing to the car in excitement. The drive was short and simple, and each got were wearing their swimsuits underneath their clothes. After setting up their towels and stuff there was a silence that seemed extremely awkward.

Nicole looked over at the two mamodo and rolled her eyes. "Such children…" She muttered, and took off her outer wear to reveal her one piece swimsuit. Not really having the intention of swimming, she took a seat under the umbrella and pulled out a book, deciding to not get involved in Cherish's little love life.

Danny looked over at Nicole who was making herself comfortable and knew there was no getting around it. He took off his shirt and revealed his muscular chest, toned from the vigorous training he participated in back at home. (Caira swoons)

Cherish blushed just slightly witnessing Danny wearing less then she had ever seen him. Really it was a site she couldn't help but like… He was attractive no doubt, his chest practically flawless as it would be considering his spell, and no doubt the workouts he'd done till now most certainly helped as she eyed his perfectly built figure.

She averted her gaze shyly and started with her own clothes, showing a strapless red swimsuit top with two strings on the side that tied together behind her neck and shorts that matched. Danny had to stop himself from gawking, making sure his jaw did not drop at the sight. Her figure was slim but curvy and she filled out her swimsuit nicely, Cherish's long legs and smooth stomach defiantly a heart stopper for the average male.

There was a moment of quiet until Danny added, "Wow you look great."

Cherish blushed quietly and started off to the shoreline to avoid the complements that made her cheeks turn pink. "Thanks.." She smiled, and then dipped her toes into the water, the waves lapping the sand.

"How's the water?" He asked, coming up behind her. "Not bad…" She mused, letting the sand sink in-between her toes.

"That's good."

Without warning, Danny rushed into the water, splashing everywhere as he did and soaking the innocent bystander Cherish. About waist deep he held his stomach, laughing so hard seeing his girlfriend's wet form, her hair clinging to her body and a shiver creeping up her spine from the cold water. "You…" She seethed, glaring angrily ahead at his still quivering with laughter form.

He didn't even have time to notice as Cherish shoved him fully into the water. Danny emerged sputtering and coughing, seeing the female snickering as he regained his footing. "Oh now you're in for it!" He threatened; his hair, though soaked, still stood up only with a slight droop. Wow it really was immune to gravity.

The two mamodo then commenced splashing each other playfully, their laughter reaching Nicole from the shore. She lowered her sunglasses and smiled before looking up at the sky. Her expression went from an amused one to one of concern upon seeing the dark clouds form in the distance. Nicole knew they were heading their way, and that was never a good thing for more than one reason. Luckily they still had a bit of time… but not much. For a little longer she let them enjoy the day but after a while she saw that the storm wasn't going to miss them this time around.

"Hey you two, looks like the weather's gonna spoil our fun. That dumb weather man… Sunny all day my ass." She scowled.

Danny and Cherish looked up from the water and saw the clouds heading in their direction fast, big and billowing with ominous flashes. The 18 year old unconsciously grabbed onto herself, folding her arms together and squeezing on tight. Noticing this, Danny gave a cautious look and led her back to the shore where they dried off and went back to the car.

All the while Cherish looked extremely out of it and unfocused as she entered the house behind Nicole and Danny. Now the white-haired mamodo wasn't ignorant, he knew what lightning did to Cherish and obviously she was being affected now, and it was only bound to get worse if the storm came their way. "Damn…" He thought to himself, irritated with this sudden turn in events.

Cherish showered first and then quietly went to her bedroom. Her boyfriend was starting to get extremely concerned, and quickly got his own shower done and knocked on her door. "Cherish..?" he said carefully, opening the door just slightly. Slight rumbling was already above them and the rain was gentle for now but gradually increasing. Danny's eyes widened seeing Cherish look up at him from where she was curled up in her bed with her hands covering her ears, traces of tears in her eyes.

He then rushed in and sat down next to her sitting crisscross and setting her down on his lap where he held onto her tightly, stroking her hair without a sound. She allowed herself to be held, and leaned into him like he was a life preserver in the middle of the ocean.

"You don't have to be scared… I'm right here." He whispered, closing his eyes. Cherish too shut hers tightly and tried to focus only on him. The lightning flashed outside, and every time it did so she cringed, not even safe behind her own eyelids as the light was so bright for an instant it seemed to penetrate her very soul. She remembered it all… The searing pain that took her breath away and made her wish for death… The greatest horror she had ever experienced and the only thing she truly feared besides losing those she loved.

Cherish hated feeling this fear. She didn't want to be weak… she always had to be strong for all the eyes that looked to her for strength and comfort. Her painful thoughts consumed her, almost completely forgetting Danny's presence as she curled up even more trying to drown out all light and sound.

Danny saw her distress and he felt utterly helpless, wanting nothing more than to save Cherish from feeling this fear. He hated that he couldn't take it away… It would take a long time for her to forget what happened to her within Faudo… maybe she would never be able to see past that fear. There was nothing more the teen wanted then to give her everything she needed to be happy for all eternity.

It took Cherish off guard when Danny picked her up and shifted her into a laying position. He layed down across from her, wrapping his arms around her back and pressing her into his chest, holding her as close as he could and his chin rested on the top of her head, eyes closed shut as he rubbed her back quietly, trying to drown out the rest of her world. He pulled back just slightly and kissed her on the forehead before saying, "Cherish… I promise I'll never let anything like that ever happen to you again. I'll always protect you."

The girl's eyes widened, staring into Danny's eyes that shown with sincerity and concern, a loving look she had never received that made her feel like she was the only girl for him… the only one that existed in his world. Her arms weaved around him and she buried herself into him, blocking out the flashes. She breathed him in deeply, focusing only on him. Danny was hers and she was his.

Soon the sounds of the outside world seemed to fade away, only the sound of his breathing remained, his warmth, and his quiet words speaking directly to her heart. She felt her body almost melt into his, the previous tense joints relaxed in rhythm to his as he took each breath. Cherish could feel the world quiet down, her senses drifting off to sleep before hearing one last phrase Danny spoke softly saying, "I'll never let go."

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Light slowly shown into Cherish's room; waking her up slowly but her eyes remained closed. She didn't want to move, being completely warm and comfortable, but she couldn't stop herself. The young mamodo girl began to become aware of her surroundings, and felt a pair of strong arms around her stomach and warm breath tickling her neck from behind.

A small smile formed on her face as well as a subtle blush when she looked down at his arms and saw their legs laced together. She presumed it was her turn to give a wakeup call, and she slowly turned around to face Danny, his arms now holding onto her back and their faces practically touching.

"Well hi there." She smiled, poking his cheek with one hand while the other wrapped around his neck. Danny twitched just slightly but remained asleep, holding Cherish closer unconsciously. Smirking, she tugged at his hair kissed him on the chin. Slowly the teenage boy opened his eyes but they soon widened, seeing their position, and he blushed like crazy feeling extremely awkward upon realizing that he'd spent the night in her room with her.

He was about to pull back but Cherish held on to him playfully. "Good morning to you too." She huffed, snickering. Danny mumbled out a good morning as well, but was a bit too distracted to focus on that formality. It made him feel all sorts of weird bubbly feelings being this close to his girlfriend… on a bed… He gulped and just continued to stare into her eyes in fear of looking elsewhere.

"So you decided to spend the night with me?" She teased, playing off of his blushing and making it even worse.

"I-I wasn't trying to…" He tried to explain, but she giggled and assured him she didn't mind.

When the couple finally got up they were surprised to learn it was actually 9:00 that morning, themselves having slept a solid 13 hours. Nicole had to check in at work to pick up a few things but she left a note informing Cherish she'd be back in about an hour.

Making their own plans, the two mamodo packed a breakfast/lunch and headed out on their own to enjoy the cool morning before the heat set in. Holding hands, they ventured to Cherish's favorite spot in the area, Danny holding the basket while their blanket was draped over his girlfriend's shoulder.

Reaching the top of the hill, she spread it out and the two unpacked and began eating. Danny gazed at the scenery, admiring this place that was special to Cherish. "This is a pretty great spot…" He complemented, enjoying the view. "Thanks, Nicole showed it to me." She nodded, taking another bite of her sandwich.

Danny gave her a side-glance and then smirked. "What?" Cherish asked, raising one eyebrow.

"Guess what I brought?" He smiled crookedly.

His girlfriend didn't say anything but eyed him with suspicion as he reached to the bottom of the basket and pulled out a few chocolate covered strawberries. Her eyes brightened and her mouth opened in an excited way. "Oh wow, where did you get them?" She asked happily, reaching for the tray they were placed neatly on after pulling off the cover.

"I asked Nicole to get them before I came… I just forked over the money and I stashed them in the back of the fridge until the right occasion." He grinned, taking one for himself. Danny knew his girlfriend well and one of her favorite treats were strawberries.

"Thank you." She expressed gratuitously, taking a bite.

Suddenly a chill seemed to fill the air and both Cherish and Danny turned to see a strange mamodo walking their way, his partner just steps behind. Alarmed they jumped up and heard the enemy speak. "Ha, I knew it. There were two mamodo lurking around here huh…" The mamodo snickered.

The couple wasn't able to tell the true strength of the opponent they faced, him having a general appearance of a humanoid mamodo but with armor that covered all but his joints and three spikes on the top of his head. His partner was plain, just an average human with short hair, simple clothes and eyes that stared blankly ahead.

Danny tensed up; ready for anything and not even considering the fact he didn't have Mr. Goldo here. "So, what are you two waiting for? A formal invitation? Go get your partners. I'll take two of you on at once." He smiled smugly, hand forming a fist in front of him.

While the white-haired teen glared ahead Cherish spoke, "Follow me."

Danny's eyes widened and he turned to his girlfriend with an awestruck look on his face. "But Cherish…"

"I need to go get Nicole."

"What?! You want to fight him?" He exclaimed loudly.

"I don't have much of a choice." She said seriously, realizing the situation faster than Danny did. Seeing what he didn't before, his teeth ground together and he knew that he had to leave this to her… no matter how much he didn't want to.

Luckily the enemy was patient and followed the pair back to Nicole's house where she came out with a determined look on her face. "Alright let's do this Cherish." Her mamodo nodded and prepared to strike, hands folded together in front of her.

From the sidelines Danny watched, fists clenched together at his side, feeling the full extent of how he truly could do nothing now. He… felt useless and that was the worst feeling in the world.

"Gou Kofaru!" Nicole called out, not wasting time with her weakest spell on this enemy. Both Cherish and her partner were shocked when the enemy merely swatted at the attack and it was deflected and flung away. "How dare you use such pitiful spells. Are you underestimating me?" The mamodo glared, and began his assault.

The battle continued without mercy. Cherish naturally wasn't used to fighting and hadn't actively participated in many battles. The enemy noticed this oh too easily and took advantage of it as much as he could; firing spells at rapid paces and using his physical strength to his advantage, always getting in close where it was hard to Cherish to fire a spell. She repeatedly took blows, being bruised and battered but still continuing to fight. Danny felt almost as if he was being tortured… just letting his girlfriend take a beating right in front of him.

She had good spells… but the other mamodo was playing off her weaknesses. If he had his spell they'd win for sure. It took all of his will power to keep his feet planted firmly on the ground though he felt his whole body shaking.

"Dioga Kofarudon!" Nicole shouted; a last effort to land a critical blow when it was apparent she was running out of strength from within. Sadly her attack was stopped and the two girls stared desperately ahead realizing the weight of this situation.

"I guess that's it huh? Pretty sad for a mamodo that lasted practically to the last 10." Their opponents scoffed. "But this will end it!" and sent a giant spell right at Cherish. Trying to shield herself, she averted her eyes and held her hands in front of her preparing for the worst. The blast impacted, causing the very ground to quake beneath them but the 18 year old was shocked to see it hadn't hit its target. She peeked up and her breath hitched, seeing Danny standing in front, his back to the enemy.

Blood trickled down from his mouth and some from his head trailed downwards next to his eye. He let out a small cough and stood up straight, offering Cherish a small pained smile that was an attempt to assure her. She just stared, shocked. As her boyfriend turned around she saw his torn up back and held her hands up to her mouth as she gasped.

"Oh so the useless one decides to join the fun? Well fine by me, I don't care if you want to get yourself killed." The other mamodo gloated.

Without looking back Danny said, "You two have to get out of here."

Horrified as she was Cherish wore an angry look and replied loudly, "There's no way in hell I'm leaving you alone without a book keeper!"

The teenager breathed deeply and then addressed her partner, "Nicole you're out of strength from within right? You need to leave. Protect Cherish's book."

Nicole paused but then replied in frustration, "This is our fight, I'm not going to just leave!"

Danny tensed up and then looked back, a determined and frightening look on his face as he answered, "Do you want Cherish to disappear?! Because she will if you don't go!"

The human's eyebrows knitted together and though it pained her she knew she would be useless here. Reluctantly she muttered, "F-Fine…" and ran off.

"Hey you aren't getting away!" The enemy roared, running after her but was met with a punch to the cheek sending him flying 10 feet away from the strong impact. "Ugh!" He moaned, taken off guard and still wondering what hit him.

His eyes widened upon seeing Danny's outstretched fist. "I'm not done yet you little bastard." The teen said, eyes narrowed in irritation.

"Fine if you want to die so badly!" The mamodo cried, coming after Danny like he had Cherish.

"That won't work quite so well on me."

That was the last thing the enemy heard as Danny disappeared from his vision and instead felt a blow to his right arm, a sick crunching sound was barley heard as he shot backwards screeching in pain. The mamodo staggered up, obviously pissed. He called to his partner to use spells and began rapid firing.

From the first attack Danny had taken full blast he wasn't as fast as he would have originally been and was hit often, the attacks slowly taking their toll. Never crying out, Danny gritted his teeth and kept pressing forward, in his mind only wanting to wear this enemy out… if only he could just wear him out they could survive.

Cherish watched not too far off, and couldn't help but let a few tears slip from seeing her boyfriend being mercilessly attacked. She kept thinking to herself, "If only he had his spell… he needs his spell!" and she felt pitiful for not being able to handle this opponent by herself… She finally had a chance to protect Danny and she had failed…. After all he had done for her here she sat again watching him risk his life, taking more and more damage.

Danny was barely able to stand now, and wobbled as he tried to balance himself. The enemy felt cocky and confident again. "Just as I thought! It doesn't matter how good you are at close combat if you can't defend yourself with spells," He laughed. "This battle's done!"

The white-haired teen grinned just slightly and he pointed to the mamodo's partner saying, "You're right about that."

"Huh?!" He questioned, looking back to see the book wasn't glowing at all, a sure sign that strength from within had run out. The mamodo's teeth clenched together in pure fury. So that was this guy's aim all along… Just to run his partner's strength from within dry.

He rubbed his arm in irritated fury, remembering the consequences of getting close to Danny. "Dammit!" He cursed, knowing that he'd be unable to finish this battle especially since there weren't any books to burn anyway.

"Just wait, I'll get back you cocky bastard and you'll be sorry you ever crossed me!" He threatened and took off in sheer annoyance.

Danny smirked triumphantly before he collapsed in pained exhaustion. "Danny!" Cherish screamed, running to him in distress. She held onto him carefully, sobbing, "You idiot… y-you're so stupid… w-why do you have to be so…" She hiccupped, eyes closed tight.

"Sorry angel." He apologized, wearing a relieved look despite his terrible condition.

"Why'd you do it… If my book had just burned I'd be fine… You didn't have to get so beat up.. you stupid…" Cherish choked out.

"If I didn't do anything that guy would have ruined our weekend." He joked, coughing a bit of blood up.

Even though he was badly injured, she still knocked him on the head, obviously fed up with his lack of a grasp on the serious situation.

"Ok sorry… It was just way too hard to see you get hurt… You get that right?" Danny tried to explain.

Cherish's tear filled eyes widened, knowing full well what he meant. "Besides I said I'd never let you go and I promised to protect you didn't I?" He smiled.

She felt a wave of understanding wash over her and Cherish knew exactly how she felt. It was as clear as day to her and always would be that Danny was the one guy for her. No matter what happened she wouldn't let them ever separate. Replying and wiping her tears away she replied smiling, "I'll never let you go either… I promise."


End file.
